the photographic essay
Ethics and law
Will the photograph of a car crash victim promote greater awareness of road safety, satisfy morbid
curiosity or just exploit the family of the victim? If you do not feel comfortable photographing
something, question why you are doing it. A simple ethical code of practice used by many
photographers is: ‘The greatest good for the greatest number of people.’
Paparazzi photographers hassle celebrities to satisfy public curiosity and for personal fi nancial
gain. Is the photographer or the public to blame for the invasion of privacy?
The fi rst legal case for invasion of privacy was fi led against a photographer in 1858. The law
usually states that a photographer has the right to take a picture of any person whilst in a public
place so long as the photograph:
~ is not used to advertise a product or service;
~ does not portray the person in a damaging light (called defamation of character).
If the photographer and subject are on private property the photographer must seek the permission
of the owner. If the photograph is to be used for advertising purposes a model release should be
signed.
Other legal implications usually involve the sensitivity of the information recorded (military, political,
sexually explicit etc.) and the legal ownership of copyright. The legal ownership of photographic
material may lie with the person who commissioned the photographs, published the photographs
or the photographer who created them. Legal ownership may be infl uenced by country or state law
and legally binding contracts signed by the various parties when the photographs were created,
sold or published.
Digital manipulation
Images are often distributed digitally which allows the photographer or agency to alter the images
subtly in order to increase their commercial potential. Original image fi les may never be sighted
by an editor. A photographer, agency or often the publication itself may enhance the sharpness,
increase the contrast, remove distracting backgrounds, remove information or combine several
images to create a new image. What is legally and ethically acceptable is still being established
in the courts of law. The limits for manipulation often rests with the personal ethics of the people
involved.
ACTIVITY 7
Discuss the ethical considerations of the following:
~ Photographing a house fi re where there is the potential for loss of life.
~ Photographing a celebrity, who is on private property, from public property.
~ Manipulating a news image to increase its commercial viability.